Category: Ages 14 and up
Length: 440 pages
Publisher: Harper Collins
Published: August 3, 2010
Back Cover: Nine of us came here.
We look like you. We talk like you. We live among you. But we are not
you. We can do things you dream of doing. We have powers you dream of
having. We are stronger and faster than anything you have ever seen. We
are the superheroes you worship in movies and comic books - but we are
real.
Our plan was to grow, and train, and become strong, and
become one, and fight them. But they found us and started hunting us
first. Now all of us are running. Spending our lives in shadows, in
places where no one would look, blending in. We have lived among you
without you knowing.
But they know.
They caught Number One in Malaysia.
Number Two in England.
And Number Three in Kenya.
They killed them all.
I am Number Four.
I am next.
My review: Fifteen year old John and his guardian, Henri, move to Paradise, Ohio. This is just one of many small towns they've lived in while on the run from a group of hostile aliens called the Mogadorians. John is one of nine beings that escaped his home planet Lorien during a takeover by the Mogadorians. The bad guys are picking off the nine Loriens in numeric order, and John-number four-is next.
While trying to fit into everyday high school life, John awaits his 'legacies'-the special powers that appear to the aliens in their teen years. I like the innocence of his relationship with Sarah, and the convincingness of his bond with Henri. I'm also a sucker for John's loyal Beagle, named Bernie Kosar.
This novel is a quick page-turner, and I'm looking forward to the movie. I'm particularly interested to see how they portray the Mogadorians. I'm not normally a fan of alien books, but I was pleasantly surprised with this one. I will definitely read more in this series.
Rating: 4 Stars
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